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Belak at his best in interview with Star in 2006

Wade Belak&rsquo;s love of life and his family shines through in 2006 &ldquo;Unplugged&rdquo; interview with the Star&rsquo;s Paul Hunter.

By Paul HunterFeature Writer

Wed., Aug. 31, 2011

From an Aug. 27, 2006 interview with the Toronto Star.

He’s the tattoo-wearin’, Metallica-lovin’, knuckle-chuckin’ enforcer for the Maple Leafs, but spend a few minutes with Wade Belak and it becomes obvious that he hasn’t lost touch with the prairie sensibilities ingrained while growing up in Battleford, Sask.

There’s little pretension to Belak, whether he’s yearning for his hunting days back home, warding off the effects of cabbage or belting out a Shakira song in a pickup truck. Away from the hockey spotlight in Toronto, the forward/defenceman is happiest lounging with his wife, Jennifer, catching up on the latest television shows or playing with his daughters, 2-year-old Andie and 5-month-old Alex. And if the 30-year-old took you for a spin on Lake Okanagan in his new boat, the conversation would just as likely be about John F. Kennedy or deductible mortgages as it would be about hockey. Unplugged caught up with Belak at his summer home in Kelowna, B.C.

How did you end up in Kelowna for the off-season?

I used to go to hockey schools out here as a kid, the Okanagan Hockey School in Penticton. ... As I got older, I worked at the camp for a month every summer. I just knew the area so I just said if I ever had the money to come here and spend the summers, I’d do it. We’ve been out here for four summers now.

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Anyone ever challenge you to a fight outside the rink?

Growing up in Saskatchewan, I’ve seen a few bar brawls — not really wanting to fight. (Once I was) just kind of hanging around during the summertime and (we got) jumped by about three guys, but we had more buddies there than they did. I was just kind of standing there watching the brawl go on. Next thing you know I was in it. That was the only time it actually happened. I try to stay away from it.

Who would you like to take on in a celebrity boxing match?

Tom Cruise. He just bugs me. He’s just so weird. I think he used to be normal, but I don’t know what’s going on with him right now. He’s all whacked out.

What’s the one thing about you that would surprise people most?

I’m actually a pretty quiet guy at home, a shy guy. The way I play on the ice is not who I am off the ice. Anybody who knows me knows I don’t have all the fancy toys and everything. ... I love my trucks, that’s about it.

You collect trucks?

No. Being a big guy I guess, I just like them. Being from Saskatchewan, with hunting and stuff, you kind of need a truck.

Is hunting a hobby of yours?

Yeah, but I haven’t been out as much as I’d like to. The season is at the same time as training camp in the fall. ... In junior, you’d go before practices and after practices. I know once I’m retired I’ll be doing a lot more of it.

What do you hunt in Saskatchewan?

White-tailed deer. I’ve gone for birds like geese and ducks. I’ve gone for elk when I was in Calgary. I haven’t gone for moose. I don’t want to go for bear; I don’t have any use for them. Killing them just for the hide is kind of a waste. I like to eat everything I hunt and I don’t really want to eat a bear. Besides, I don’t want to get mauled in the process.

If you have a free evening in Toronto, what do you like to do?

The kids go down about 8 p.m. We have one of those digital recorders. ... We record all the shows during the evening or when I’m on the road, then when the kids are in bed we just lay in bed and watch all the shows we’ve missed over the week. It’s kind of our time.

What shows do you hate to miss?

I hate to miss Survivor, Prison Break. I just started watching Hell’s Kitchen this summer. That was awesome. I try not to get all wrapped up in that reality stuff. Two and a Half Men, ER, Grey’s Anatomy ... (laughs) a lot of them.

Would you be a good candidate on Survivor?

I’d love to do Survivor just because I’m an outdoors guy, but I think the biggest thing would be not eating as much as I like to. If I don’t eat, I get real agitated and get headaches and stuff.

Name three people, living or dead, you’d like to invite to dinner.

I would probably invite John F. Kennedy. (Long pause) Gawd, there’s some good people. I’d love to meet Mel Gibson, despite the trouble he is in right now. And, umm, (another long pause) Bill Clinton.

It’s interesting that none are from hockey world.

I already know what hockey people are like, but I’m a big JFK fan. I think I’ve read every book about him and his family and his life and basically how cursed the family is.

What was the worst job you ever had?

I’d come home from junior and I’d be one of those student labourers. You just go work at whatever for a couple of days. The worst day was when my brother and I had to go fill a hole. This huge hole in the back of this guy’s backyard. We had to move wheelbarrows of dirt around. It took all day to do it.

Are you from a farming background?

My grandparents were farmers. My dad is a cop. And basically when my grandpa retired from farming, we just started renting the land out. Somebody else farms it. I like the peace of being on a farm and I’d love to have animals, but I could never be an actual grain farmer. It’s like cutting grass only with a really, really big piece of land, and you’re probably going slower.

What’s in your pockets right now?

My cellphone. That’s it. My wife has my wallet.

Who’s the most famous person on your speed dial?

Most famous? Wow. Probably Lochlyn Munro.

Who is Lochlyn Munro?

You should know that. He’s the actor in all the Wayans Brothers’ movies, like White Chicks. He was in A Night at the Roxbury, Dead Man on Campus. He’s Canadian, from B.C. I met him this summer at a golf tournament.

Just olive oil in a frying pan. It’s pretty boring, but I actually like it. I’ve had it a few times. I’m only allowed to have it a few times because, you know ... everyone knows what cabbage does to you. It makes you fart like crazy.

I think I treated myself big this summer by buying a boat. That’s kind of for all of us, a 228 Tahoe Deck Boat. I don’t know why they call it a deck boat. It has a speedboat hull, but it kind of has the same stuff that a pontoon boat would have on it. It has a Porta Potty on it. Lots of room for sitting. It’s awesome.

If I wasn’t a hockey player, I’d be ...

A professional golfer. I’m one of those guys who loves the game but is not very good at it.

In 10 years I’ll be ...

Dead (laughs). No ... I’ll be, gawd, hopefully living out in Kelowna and making millions on developmental properties (laughs). Hopefully in 10 years I’ll still be playing in the NHL.

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